Contouring Products + Tools For Pale Skin

I love contouring, it is an essential step in my makeup routine - if I am going to put makeup on, I am going to contour! If you don't know what contouring is then let me explain, it is a process whereby a fake shadow is created under the cheekbones to create the illusion of higher more pronounced cheekbones. Contouring can also be used along the sides of the nose if you think your nose is a bit wide, on the temples and along the jaw. Here are my favourite contouring products for pale skin along with tips and tricks!

Firstly, a very brief guide to contouring the face - I always contour my cheeks using one of the brushes above. I suck in my cheeks (make the fishy face, you will look ridiculous doing this) and place the contour/bronzer/blush into the hollow line created. Blend, blend, blend. Then take the excess on the brush and buff it into the temples and along the jaw. This process give the face more shape and structure; I always follow with highlighter. 

Contouring products (blush/bronzer/contour): First up is my favourite contouring product currently - the Chanel Healthy Glow Multi-Colour in '01 Light Harmony' which is a highlighter, bronzer and blush in one compact. The bronzer is so natural looking even on my pale skin. This product is great for contouring is it isn't very pigmented so the contouring line will not look stark/unnatural. Next up is my second favourite bronzer on the moment, Benefit's Hoola Bronzer. I have had it for ages and I have fallen in love with it again. You have to be a little bit careful if you have super pale skin as I do but it is a great bronzer for contouring the face with.   Now onto a cheaper product - the Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer which is fantastic for the price and the shimmer doesn't really show up on the skin so it is great for contouring as you shouldn't contour with shimmery/glittery products. 

The next three products have been a bit neglected but I do still love them, especially the Kevin Aucoin Creamy Sculpting Duo which has cream versions of the celestial highlighter and the sculpting powder. They apply so quickly and easily, I love this mini duo and it was only £19 from SpaceNK which is a fantastic bargain as the just one of the powder versions is over £30 (although the don't get as much product with this duo). Another creamy product is the Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow which is a grey creamy eyeshadow and contour product. I love it as an all over eyeshadow and as a contouring before foundation. This is the only contouring product that I apply before my foundation - I just moisturise, prime and then apply this in the hollows of my cheeks with my fingers or the Illamasqua brush and blend, then apply my foundation over the top with a sponge. The last contouring product is a fantastic multi-tasker as I use the lightest brown matte shade as a contour and as a bronzer. There is a white shade in this matte bronzer quad too which is great for sharpening up the contour line or blending it out. 

Contouring tools: I mainly use the Real Techniques Contour Brush as it is a great shape, it is fairly small so it is precise and it is super soft! I love all of the RT brushes! I also have the Illamasqua Blush/Contour Brush which was stupidly expensive at £28 but it is great for contour, especial cream contour as it is really dense and firm but also very soft. Lastly, the Chanel brush that came with my Multi-Colour Compact, it is a great shape for contouring as it is thin and also soft. 

Contouring tips and tricks: Suck in your cheeks and make a fishy face to make sure you are applying the contour into the hollow of your cheeks - the line should go from your ear but don't apply past the line from the middle if your pupil as it will look fake. 

Blend Blend Blend, there is almost nothing worse than a very strong contour (unless it is a halloween look in which case it is amazing). Go for cool toned product for those with pale skin as it will look like a natural shadow. I also pair contour with highlighter to make the face look more refreshed as contouring can look a bit flat sometimes. 

Has this post been useful? Have you tried any of these contouring products or tools? Let me know if you want a demo post or a post one a few of the products individually. 

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Summer Glow + Sculpt Makeup For Pale Skin

I have wanted to write a post about contouring for pale skin for months but I have had so many other posts to publish instead but I am finally going to talk about my favourite highlight and sculpting products for pale skin tones which is a great on trend look for summer. Also a number of my lovely followers have asked for tutorials, so I hope to do more in the future. 

1. Conceal: I am using the Clarins Extra Comfort Foundation which is almost full coverage and it gives the most gorgeous luminous, radiant glow to the skin - it is fantastic for my dry skin. I am using the Real Techniques Buffing Brush, from the core collection to apply and blend the foundation. Remember to take the foundation onto your jaw, neck and around the ears and hairline. If you have flaky skin then dampen a foundation sponge (the Cosmopolitan one is fantastic) and press the foundation onto the skin. 

2. Under-Eye Concealing: My under eye dark circles are one of my main skin concerns, the foundation does a good job of covering them but I do need more coverage, so I am using my Nars Radiant Cream Concealer which is a recent purchase of mine and I love it! Pat under eye concealer in with finger tips so you don't pull the skin. 

3. Bronze & Contour: I have very pale skin so bronzing and contouring can look a little messy so I have been applying my bronzer which in this case is my contour, with the Real Techniques Retractable Bronzer Brush which is a duo fibre brush so it picks up less product and blends it lightly/evenly. Make sure you blend your bronzer and or contour well, you don't want the line to be very stark but there should be a contrast.  Suck in your cheeks, make the fishy face *it's super attractive* and apply the bronzer along the line created, then buff the excess bronzer onto the cheeks, temples and jaw line. I love the Benefit Hoola Bronzer and the new Chanel Healthy Glow Multi-Colour as they both give a wonderful radiance and bronzed look to the skin but they are also suitable for pale/fair skin tones. A cheaper alternative is the Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer which is an amazing drugstore buy!

4. Highlight: For me you cannot really use bronzer or contour without using a highlighter as well, the two just work well together and give a sculpted look to the face which is perfect for summer! I use the incredible TheBalm Mary Loumanizer Highlighter which is a creamy champagne highlight, great for my pale skin. Apply the highlighter to the top of the cheeks and link it up in a C shape to the brow bone (just under the arch of your brows) for a dewy, healthy glow. 

5. Final Touches: I finished my glowing and sculpted summer look with an Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeshadow Stick all over the lid (shade, Sin) and into the inner corner for extra glow and it makes the eyes look bigger and more awake. Curl the lashes and apply mascara to the top lashes only, this again creates the illusion of bigger eyes. I love this eye look as it looks so fresh and naturally pretty; it is also a quick and easy makeup for those hotter summer days. Lastly, a touch of the Korres Tinted Lipbalm (Rose) to hydrate and tint the lips a lovely pinky shade. 

There you have my glowing, sculpted summer makeup look with a few of my favourite products! Let me know if you re-create this look! This is my entry into the Fragrance Direct blogger competition - This competition is open to all bloggers, for T&Cs go to http://www.fragrancedirect.co.uk/page/competition.

Have you tried any of these products before? What do you think of my look?

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May Beauty Favourites

I haven't created beauty favourites post in a while, If i don't have a favourites post then I show my favourites on Twitter (ofbeautyand). My favourites for May include a mixture of fragrance, nail polish remover, makeup - including three lip products and two bronzers!

Makeup: April and May have been busy makeup months, I have received some new products to try and also I have bought quite a lot...oops! Firstly, lips, I have been loving the Revlon Lip Butter in 'Pink Truffle' through out April and May, as well as the Loreal Glamshine stain thing in 'Lolita' and the MAC Lipstick in 'Hug Me' which I won in Kirsty's blog giveaway.  Only one eyeshadow favourite which is the Nars Belissimma duo and I recently bought the Nars Radiance Creamy Concealer in 'Vanilla' which is fantastic!

Now, the past couple of month beauty-wise has all been about bronzers, I splurged and bought the new Chanel Healthy Glow Multi-Colour in '01 Light Harmony' which is a highlighter, bronzer and blush in one compact, click here to see my initial impressions post on this product. I have also been loving a much cheaper bronzer, the Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer - such an amazing bargain! I have been entering the Benefit #howdoyouhoola competition on Instagram and it has made me dig out my Hoola bronzer, I think I love it even more now than when I bought it. 

Nails & Tools: The first makeup tool I have been loving this month is the nanshy Flat Top Foundation Brush which I won in one of their Twitter giveaways - it is amazing at applying and blending liquid foundation. Also this month I have changed from my usual Pretty Quik Nail Polish Remover Pot to the H&M version (£2.99) and it is so much better which is impressive as it is acetone free. 

Extras: The last few products are little extras that don't really have a category. The first product is the famous Nuxe Reve De Miel Lip Balm Pot which I have been using for month and months, it is like a mask for the lips. The Elemis Quiet Time Pulse Point Gel has been a lifesaver the past month, I was kindly sent it by Elemis and it has been part of my nightly routine ever since. The last May favourites product is a fragrance, it is the Yves Rocher L'eau Moment de Bonheur EDT which is so refreshing, light and summer! 

There are my May beauty favourites! What were your favourite products for the month of May? 

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Initial Impressions: Chanel Les Beiges Multi-Colour No 1. Light Harmony

I have a whole series of 'initial impressions' blog posts coming soon with multiple products in each post but for today I thought I would share my opinions and initial impressions of the new Chanel Les beiges Health Glow Multi-Colour (SPF15 PA++) (£39). This is my very first Chanel purchase!

I bought this product from House of Fraser as soon as I saw it as I think it is going to be a sell out product this summer! I bought the shade 'No 1 Light Harmony' which is the lightest shade of two. With the compact you receive a pouch (very fancy) and a semi circular brush which is fantastic! The powder consists of a top highlight layer, followed by a bronzer and finally a blusher. The highlighter does have fine shimmer in it and the bronzer/blusher also have shimmer in them but it is very very fine, it is hardly noticeable in the compact. 

Can we just have a moments silence for the packaging....how gorgeous, luxe and freakin beautiful is this compact - even the brush and powder have 'chanel' written on them. Usually I throw away brushes but as this is Chanel there is no way this brush is going in the bin - and the brush is fantastic! The brush is super smooth, soft and effective for the highlight, bronzer and blusher. The brush is big but thin so it is great for contouring when used on its side and when used flat it is great for sweeping the product over the high points of the face that would catch the sun. 

Now onto the powders, the highlighter is a soft creamy champagne colour with noticeable fine shimmer. It is a super soft powder that is very easy to apply and blend. The shimmer isn't really noticeable on the skin, it just gives a subtle, lit from within glow *most used phrase in blogging ever*. I expected the pigmentation to be a little better as I do like a strong highlighter (such as TheBalm's Mary Loumanizer) but it is nice to have a more subtle sophisticated glow. 

Secondly the bronzer, I have only recently started to get into bronzer fully and I am loving the Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer. I was slightly concerned while buying this compact that the bronzer would be too strong, dark or orange on my super pale skin but it isn't. As you can see from the swatches above, the bronzer as well as the other powders isn't very pigmented which may be a negative for some people but for me it is great as it means I will not look like a muddy, orange tangoed mess! It does not look orange or dark on my skin, it blends so well that it looks very natural. I like the subtle glow the bronzer gives and it is fantastic for contouring - it is not shimmery at all so it is nice for a bronzy summer contour. 

Lastly the blush, if you have been following my blog for a while you will know that I am definitely not a blusher kind of girl but since using TheBalm's How 'Bout Them Apples Lip & Cheek Colour, I am a convert! I use the same Chanel brush for all of the powders and it works well. The blusher is the most pigmented when swatched but on the skin it is just like the highlighter and bronzer - subtle but gorgeous. I can easily get away with swirling the brush through all three powders then dusting it on the high points of the face for a lovely subtle, healthy glow - hence the name. 

Overall, I adore the packaging and the compact. I am very happy with my first Chanel purchase. All three powders are beautiful to use and give a lovely, subtle and glowing radiance to the skin. It would be great for travelling as you have three products (well five in one, if you count the mirror and brush) together. Some people will be disappointed with the subtle pigmentation but I love it, it is perfect for my very pale skin. I am knocking one star off for the price and the scent of the powders (which is nice and floral but I would have preferred it to be unscented). I will definitely get a lot of use out of this compact, I hope it isn't limited edition! ★★★★☆, 4/5 (almost 5/5).

What was your first Chanel purchase? Will this highlighter/bronzer/blusher compact be on your summer beauty wish list?

Check out my international blog giveaway ft. Tom Ford and Benefit Cosmetics but HURRY it ends in less than 11 hours!! 

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